Summary

A daily summary of global stock index price action & what caused it in Asia, Europe and the US- to help investors and traders of forex, stocks, indexes etc., get back into context for the week ahead in global financial markets.

Continued upward momentum for global equities and by extension other risk assets. The last week shows risk appetite either rising or steady.

US and European indexes upward momentum remains strong, as indicated by their being in the upper "buy zone" of their double Bollinger bands.

Daily Recap Top Market Movers

The following is a daily recap of top market drivers.

MONDAY: Russian Invasion of Crimea Slams Markets

Asian indexes were down hard [Japan -1.3%, Hong Kong -1.5%, China +0.9%, India -0.8%, Australia -0.33%, Korea -0.77%, Singapore -0.75%] on rising tensions in Ukraine. Adding to the negativity, China's HSBC manufacturing PMI dropped to a seven-month low of 48.5 in February from 49.5 in January, while the official mfg PMI (focused more on large state-owned firms) slipped to 50.2 from 50.5. On the brighter side, the official non-manufacturing PMI rose from 53.4 to 50.2, perhaps a sign that government attempts to rebalance China's economy are working.

European indexes fell even harder than those of Asia [UK/FTSE100 -1.49%, DAX -3.44%, CAC -2.66%, Spain -2.38%, STOXX50 -2.55%], not surprising given their greater exposure to and fallout from the Ukraine-Russia tensions and threatened military confrontation. Russian forces took control of Ukraine's Crimea region, which has an ethnic Russian majority. Ukraine continued with its own military preparations, while the United States threatened sanctions to isolate Russia economically. The Euro-zone also saw its manufacturing PMI drop from 54 in January to 53.2. Germany stayed over 50 (growth) but France remained below 50 (contraction). Per Markit.com, the overall survey is consistent with EZ industrial output growing at 1% in Q1, while GDP is set to rise 0.4-0.5%.

US stocks joined the Ukraine driven selloff, [Dow -0.95%, S&P -0.74%, Nasdaq -0.77%] to a lesser degree, and on modest volume and well off daily lows, indicating a lack of fear and belief that the situation would be resolved peacefully, given the potential economic costs to all concerned, and the unlikelihood that the West would provide meaningful military support (despite treaties committing the US and Britain to do just that as a reward for Ukraine surrendering its nuclear arsenal).

US manufacturing PMI and consumer spending were both positive, but as usual; geopolitical events outweighed the good data.

TUESDAY: Risk Appetite Rebound As Putin Halts Further Military Escalation

European stocks soared, regaining much the previous session's losses after Russian President Vladimir Putin ended Russian "military exercises" near the Russian-Ukraine border said he would only use force in neighboring Ukraine as a last resort (in case of what?). [UK/FTSE100 +1.72%, Germany +2.46%, France +2.45%, Spain +2.51%, STOXX50 +1.94%]. What a guy. Russian troops continued however, to surround Ukraine military bases. Putin told the press that ousted Ukrainian leader Viktor Yanukovych remains the real president, and had asked Russia to defend the lives and health of Ukrainians.

US stocks also rallied strongly [Dow +1.39%, S&P +1.52%, Nasdaq +1.75%] on easing rhetoric, more than erasing Monday's losses and bringing the S&P 500 back a new high.

Given the good data and short term stabilization in Crimea, we attributed the drop in many of the biggest indexes to a simple technical correction (aka short term profit taking) after Tuesday's bounce and persisting uncertainty about the Ukraine situation.

France organized a gathering of foreign ministers of Russia, the United States, Britain, and Germany in Paris on Wednesday to try to start a diplomatic process to defuse the Ukraine crisis.

· A pair of disappointing reports on private sector job growth and service sector activity was blamed on temporary bad weather. The weakness in both reports suggested that expectations will be low for the official US BLS jobs reports on Friday. Given that markets believe the taper will continue unless things get much worse, the "bad news is good news" reaction (on hopes of a halt to the taper) didn't happen.

· The Fed's Beige Book survey indicated improved economic activity in most parts of the country, but that the weather was a hindrance.

THURSDAY: Asia Up, In West Caution Ahead of US Jobs Reports

Asia was up [Japan +1.6%, Hong Kong +0.6%, China +0.3, India +1.1%, Australia +0.04%, Korea +0.22%, Singapore +0.40]. Japan lead the way higher, fueled by news that an advisory panel to the Government Pension Investment Fund could allocate less to domestic bonds and more to stocks as the country moves out of deflation.

European shares were little changed on typical caution ahead of US jobs reports and lack of any other catalysts. The ECB's monthly rate statement and press conference was the big potential market mover, but as expected, it announced neither any changes in policy nor hints that such changes were imminent.

Meanwhile Crimea's parliament voted unanimously for the province to become a part of Russia. The people of Crimea will vote on this in a referendum on March 16. Crimea was part of Russia until 1954 and over the half the population is Russian. This edges Crimea closer to Russia, raises tensions with Ukraine and the West, but no one expects much to happen at this point beyond some sanctions, maybe. However a yes vote could undermine claims Western claims of Russian interference.

US indexes were mixed [Dow +0.40%, S&P +0.18%, Nasdaq -0.13%] but overall made slight gains, with the S&P 500 up slightly to its 50th record close since last April, after weekly new jobless claims hit a three-month low, a bullish sign ahead of Friday's monthly non-farm payrolls report.

Asian indexes closed mixed [Japan +0.9%, Hong Kong flat, China -0.1%, India +1.9%, Australia +0.32, Korea -0.05%, Singapore +0.23%], on the usual caution ahead of US jobs reports. They were lead once again by Japan as a combination of better-than-expected U.S. jobless claims and a weak Yen lifted the Nikkei.

· Reports Friday of a Ukrainian military base in Crimea under siege by Russians, and reports of confrontations between Ukrainian and Russian troops

· A US warship entered the Black Sea

· U.S. President Barack Obama ordered visa bans and asset freezes for unidentified persons who were deemed responsible for threatening Ukraine's sovereignty.

US Stocks finished mostly lower[Dow +0.18%, S&P +0.05%, Nasdaq -0.37%], as investors took profits after early gains sparked by the better than expected nonfarm payrolls report, on uncertainty about Crimea and signs of rising tensions cited above.

· The assumption that the Crimea situation will be resolved with neither war nor long term economic damage. This was the biggest factor, however next week's likely vote in Crimea to secede from Ukraine and re-join Russia begs for a Western response and uncertainty over Russia's likely response.

Disclosure/disclaimer: No positions. The above is for informational purposes only. All trade decisions are solely the responsibility of the reader.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it. I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.